IRANIAN LESBIAN APPEALS FOR HELP

An Iranian lesbian who faces execution in her home country has appealed for help after her asylum request was rejected by the UK.

Kiana Firouz, who appeared in the lesbian movie Cul de Sac based on her life story, fears being killed if forced to return to Iran.

Her application for asylum in the UK was turned down by the Home Office and, according to Firouz’s solicitors, an appeal is unlikely to succeed, which means that she faces deportation.

“Homosexuality in Iran is a sin and offence which is subject to harsh punishment. According to the Islamic law, repetition of this offence will be punished by death,” said Firouz.

She added that her appearance in the film and the coverage that it received in the media make it unlikely that the authorities will not be aware of her lesbianism.

“The movie contains sexual scenes which itself would be subject to death punishment if I return to Iran. Now, the only hope remains for me is LGBT’s support,” she said.

An online petition has been set up calling for the British government not to deport Firouz back to Iran.

A recent study on LGBT asylum seekers found that people requesting asylum in the UK on the basis of sexual orientation were far less likely to be granted asylum that other refugees.